MANILA – The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is ready to stop its preparations for the first-ever Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) Parliamentary Elections (BPE) next year, once a law postponing it is enacted.
“In case it becomes a law, the Comelec stands ready to stop our preparations. If it is not passed into law, we will just be continuing with our preparations. Whatever will be the decision, as the law’s implementor, we will just be waiting for it… We are ready to comply,” Comelec spokesperson John Rex Laudiangco said in a Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon briefing Wednesday.
He was referring to House Bill 11444, which was passed on final reading by the House of Representatives on Tuesday.
Under the bill, the Bangsamoro elections will be moved a year later or from May 12, 2025 to May 11, 2026.
Meanwhile, Laudiangco said they will continue to monitor developments on the proposed reset of the BPE.
“We know there is still a long process since it will still have to be passed by the Senate and signed by the Chief Executive before it becomes a law,” he added.
The BPE is scheduled to be conducted simultaneously with the May 2025 midterm polls. (PNA)